Flying High in a Wheelchair.....
Coming Soon!!

Chris Wood, a father of two young disabled adults tells us about his campaign "Flying Disabled"  to help anyone with a disability enjoy the freedom of air travel......

The world of air travel and wheelchairs have never seen eye to eye.

Indeed, traveling by air if you have any sort of disability can be quite a tactical nightmare. However, things are changing.

I've been campaigning and lobbying governments, aviation and stakeholders for the last three years.  I've gained a lot of friends and likeminded people along the way.

In the coming weeks it is very likely my campaign will move from the green paper to the white paper and will therefore become Government policy.

I've attended aviation conferences and engaged with those very stakeholders that can make this happen - their involvement is crucial.

As are the wheelchair manufacturers who are ready to bring this to a reality. 

The support from all those different communities that will eventually benefit has been huge and humbling.

I must give credit to our aviation Minister Baroness Sugg. She is the first aviation minister who has set her sights on making this better.

We have discussed this subject on many occasions. Including two ministerial round tables bringing all the relevant stakeholders together. Flying Disabled needs legislation and she can help that along.

  

So where is the campaign now?

Ultimately no one can board an aircraft in a wheelchair (like trains buses etc..) as the safety rules for air travel are extremely high. Passenger safety is everything.

I'm setting up a consortium made of aviation and disability.  This group will establish the solution, without this the status quo will remain.

Passengers using air travel with a disability increase year on year by double digit figures.

We are a global ageing population that is living longer and for many this comes with limited mobility.

By establishing this solution, layers of poor practice across the aviation bubble I am sure will be revealed – they are there, I have witnessed these issues.

My ambition is simple, I would like my son and daughter to have a comfortable and dignified journey by air. 

To achieve this they and so many like them around the world must be able to travel by air sitting in their own wheelchair – nothing less will do.

If an industry is not including, then they are excluding - surely in this day and age this is not acceptable.

To get involved in the campaign email: chris.wood@flyingdisabled.org.uk or complete the contact form on the website.

www.flyingdisabled.org.uk